New anti-counterfeit tech gets $2.6m funding

A US company that has invented a device which can determine whether an item is counterfeit has raised $2.6 million in funding, with aims to become the industry standard.

Entrupy was founded just last year, but is already used by hundreds of second-hand luxury retailers.

The company‘s technology stands to do away with the manual authentication process, using microscopic imagery and algorithms to determine authenticity with a 96.4 per cent success rate.

The technology uses a device provided by Entrupy which scans the material of an item and sends microscopic images to the company. It then analyses the data and informs the user of its authenticity within seconds.

Each scan costs $10 and through the use of its smartphone app can be done anywhere.

“We are excited about the opportunity this funding gives us to accelerate the development and expansion of our solutions, increasing our ability to reach across product categories and geographies,” co-founder and chief executive Vidyuth Srinivasan said.

“We look forward to bringing to bear a future where trust is the norm in secondary-market transactions and no consumer gets duped or worse by a fake product.”

2 COMMENTS

These slick marketing startups remind me of the kind that exist to bilk investors. We see them come and go in our industry.
1. If you’re buying a designer bag off of a blanket on a boardwalk, or out of the back of a van in an alley, you know it’s fake. You know what you paid for it.
2. Time and time again, relying on consumers to do a brand’s policing doesn’t work. They’re not going to go to your website to look it up, they’re not going to scan your barcode, and they’re not going to pay $10. They don’t care.
3. This only stops cheap knockoffs, not the high quality 3rd shift stuff that makes it out the backdoor of the original manufacturer.